Brave Shine
by GintaxAlvissForever
Summary: The Witch Hunter tournament finally begin! The sixteen Smashers are taken away to another realm with no way of returning until the tournament is finished. While Ares reassures Palutena that everything is secured for the tournament, Rob fears that something terrible is going to happen. He's not wrong seeing as how a certain psychopath is out to ruin everything for them...
1. Departure

**Brave Shine**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Super Smash Brothers. That goes to Nintendo. I also don't own Bayonetta as that franchise belongs to Platinum Games. The only characters I own are those from the Golden Land, angels from Skyworld including the royal bodyguards, Angel Assembly and archangels along with all the other angels and of course the witch hunters.**

 **Summary: After training (or relaxing in Bayonetta's case), the Witch Hunter tournament has finally began. The sixteen Smashers are taken away to another realm with no way of returning until the tournament is finished. While Ares reassures Palutena and the Smashers that everything is secured for the tournament, Rob fears that something terrible is going to happen. He's not wrong seeing as how Acedia finally instigates his plan to eliminate the Smashers chosen for the tournament. His end goal is to claim a certain tactician for himself without the interference of powerful adversaries under the law of the Witch Hunter Realm. Will the Smashers involved in the tournament set aside the glory for the tournament to protect their friend or are the glory days for these Smashers done?**

 **Pairing: Corrin/Bayonetta, Rob/Shulk, Fox/Sonic, Ganondorf/Palutena, implied Cloud/Bayonetta, Samus/Peach and dark OC (Acedia)/Rob**

 **Rated: T (for Teen) but will be bumped up to M later but its MA (for Archive of Our Own)**

 **Genre: Action/Adventure, Suspense, Drama, Friendship, some Romance and Humor**

 **Warning: Swearing, extreme sexual situations, violence, stalking, creepiness (ramped up in comparison to** _ **Ban Hammer**_ **) and unintentional OOC**

 **This is a tournament arc. I have a lot of these planned out that focused on battles, but this one will pretty much deal with the plot that started in** _ **Ban Hammer**_ **. This will be multiple chapters and split into two plots: What happens during Smash and the political drama outside of it. Enjoy!**

Chapter 1: Departure

* * *

The room was too dark for the normal eye to see. When vision failed a person, he or she would turn to their sense of hearing. By tuning into the sound in the room, one could hear the sound of static electricity, and with the electricity came from the few sparks from the Levin Sword held by the Tactician Magician. The darkness hid his figure very well, but his expression was blank as he held the bloody Levin Sword in front of him. It was almost like he was being controlled like a puppet.

"My, you really are weak when your power is cut in half." A voice said in a mocking tone. "I am disappointed that an Umbra Witch can't even handle a puppet like this beautiful one right here."

There was a man that was concealing himself in the shadows. On the surface, one would think he was a vampire. His red eyes glowed in the darkness, but it was impossible to see the rest of him besides a tint of blond hair and his shiny tuxedo. The man had his arms around the small tactician that was under his control.

The one who was impaled was a woman. She was considered one of the strongest fighters to be participating in the Smash Brothers tournament. However, the realm this tournament was taking place in reduced her power in half. Combined with Master Hand's promise to tone her down to make things entertaining for the tournaments, it left her wide open outside of Smash. When an Umbra Witch bled, they bled whatever flower they represented. For this Umbra Witch, she was bleeding roses. Just because she was bleeding roses didn't mean she would cough up blood. She never would have imagined how powerful the tactician's sword was outside of Smash.

"Really Bayonetta, you should have forfeited your spot to your precious dragon prince while you had the chance." The man continued to mock.

"Acedia…" The Umbra Witch hissed as she tried to stand up. She was still feeling the shock of the Levin Sword flowing through her body. There was no way she would be able to fight back even if she still had her guns on her. If she could just reach for her lollipop inside her chest, then maybe would stand a fighting chance…

"Boys, hold her down."

Bayonetta wouldn't even be able to move from her spot when two powerful hands had seized her arms. They were this close to knocking her to the ground, but Acedia ordered them to hold her in place while she was on her knees. The wound that the tactician caused would continue to bleed this way.

"…Underhanded as always…" Bayonetta muttered darkly as she glared at Rob. "Rob, you really need to wake up from your pleasant dream! You're going to get all your friends killed!"

Acedia just laughed as he pulled the tactician close. "He can't hear you anymore, Cereza." He told her in a mocking tone. "You should have noticed that he was under my control the minute I got my hands on him."

The raven haired witch was at fault. She was so focused on the tournament and one upping Palutena that she failed to listen to Corrin's advice and watch over his friend. Rob was paranoid about coming to the Witch Hunter Realm, and for good reasons. He ended up being captured behind their backs and hypnotized to capture the other fighter participating. Because Acedia made Master Hand promise that only the sixteen fighters chosen could be in the Witch Hunter Realm, there was no way to get help from the others. Acedia was free to pretty much do whatever he wanted. He set the entire tournament up so the losers would be under his control.

It worked like this: it was a double elimination tournament. If you were knocked into losers, Acedia would have some sort of control over you due to injecting his negative influence onto the Smasher. However, should the Smasher be knocked out of the tournament, Acedia would be able to control them completely. The sole exception was Rob solely because he had forced the tactician to be alone with him and did who knows what behind closed doors. Half the Smashers were already eliminated from the tournament thus were under Acedia's control. Bayonetta was surprisingly knocked into losers the first round and had felt his growing presence ever since. Since she was too strong to be controlled, Acedia resorted to hurting her instead. This is how she ended up in this situation. By failing to realize that Rob had every reason to be scared of Acedia, she left herself wide open for a surprise attack. Now, there was no way for her to get out of this without hurting the other fighters. The last thing she needed was Master Hand giving her a heavy punishment that was worse than the "nerf". It frustrated her how she wouldn't be strong enough to handle Ike or Ryu. If only Cloud realized that something was off, she might have a chance…

"This really is disappointing. I expected more from you." Acedia continued to taunt as he asked one of the Smashers to get him an item that he was going to use on the captured witch. "Then again, this is the Witch Hunter Realm. You have gone through this place one time too many without consequences. Now it is time to pay."

"…Spare me the melodrama…" Bayonetta growled darkly as she looked around for anything that she could use to distract Acedia or the Smashers. It was pointless. It was nine Smashers against a half-powered witch that was already being held down unable to summon or grab her weapons.

"You know, you could always beg for that handsome swordsman still in winners to come save you. Or you can beg and cry for your precious dragon prince to break the rules and save you…but your pride prevents you from doing something as _cute_ as that."

"Don't insult me."

"You're right. I'm sorry. I forgot that your dragon prince is too precious to come over here. I think you know what will happen now if you disobey me."

Bayonetta snarled as a response. It wasn't like the raven haired witch to get angry with someone, but Acedia had threatened Corrin in the most horrifying fashion. It was why she let her guard down in the first place not expecting Rob to be the one to impale her. If she could only get him to snap out of his trance…

"Ah, thank you K my favorite experiment." Acedia thanked as the young red Villager named K handed the madman what appeared to be a torch of some sorts. Bayonetta's eyes widened realizing what he intended to do. "Since we have plenty of time before its time for your next match, let's have some fun with that body of yours, shall we? I'm sure you don't mind me burning those roses on you."

Bayonetta failed to notice her face became pale as the dancing flame was waved in front of her. Acedia was not like the other villains. He had no problem messing with his captives even if it didn't benefit him. She flinched when she felt the heat over her face before she heard something sizzling. The Umbra Witch let out a horrible scream that should have alerted the other Smashers that were not under Acedia's control. Alas, they were below ground with Acedia putting up some sound proof magic to prevent anyone from hearing her cries. The flame was too hot for the Umbra Witch and she ended up passing out to his disappointment.

"Tch…you can't even handle something like this? Boys, throw her in the dungeon. Do not let her out of your sight. My favorite tactician, make sure her injuries are treated enough to where no one will notice."

* * *

A few days ago before Acedia had almost had a complete victory over the Smashers, the sixteen chosen Smashers were still preparing to leave to the Witch Hunter Realm where the Witch Hunter tournament would be held. Master Hand decided it would be better if the chosen Smashers waited outside of the mansion where there was open space instead of going either to his room or the Smash Arena for the A-Okay to leave.

Not all the Smashers were in the location needed. Master Hand growled at how the three participants who were considered couples were not in the location needed. He expected this from Bayonetta and Palutena. Those women would milk their last time with their boyfriends for all it was worth. However, he wasn't pleased with Rob doing the same thing. Rob and Shulk weren't dating, but they were very close. Give it a few more weeks and the two would be making babies like there was no tomorrow. Crazy Hand told Master Hand to not be concerned with them seeing as how they wouldn't be able to see them for a week.

"That's the problem! It's only a week! It's not like they're going to _die_ in the Witch Hunter Realm!"

"It's love, brother! You should try getting into a relationship with Heart-"

"Nope! We're done with this conversation."

Rob had a legitimate reason for not being in the designated spot on time in comparison to the other Smashers. Rob was talking to Shulk about his worries going to the Witch Hunter Realm. The Monado Boy did not receive a vision of anything terrible happening, so he assumed Rob would be fine. For Rob, it was a different story. He didn't tell Shulk the entire story about the day he and Corrin went into the library to search for proof of voter fraud. He didn't want to worry Shulk about the fear of being ambushed during the tournament and being gang raped against his will (and enjoying it). The blond would give him big hugs and reassure the shorter male that everything will be okay. He just needs to stick together with the other Smashers and he should be fine. That was another concern he had. Rob found it convenient how none of the Smashers chosen were people he really trusted. He could try speaking with Marth or Ike but those two were closer to each other than he was to either of them. It wasn't worth it.

"Just ask Cloud." Shulk had told him. "I'm sure he'll make sure nothing happens."

"…He's going to be with Bayonetta the entire time…I just know it."

"Just don't be alone, Rob. You always make yourself worry for no reason."

Rob just sighed at the thought.

"Look, I haven't gotten a single vision of anything happening to you. I know you'll be fine."

"Really?"

"Really." Shulk smiled as he started to lean in as if he was going to kiss him. He ended up pulling back realizing he was too close. "When you come back, I'll have a surprise for you."

"…Really?"

Shulk nodded his head. Rob started to blush thinking what it could be. It was Rob's turn to start flirting with Shulk, but unlike the seer, he was aware of what he was doing.

"When I return…I hope you're ready for me. I've been saving myself up for you."

Shulk's entire face turned red at that point. Rob just snickered before sticking his tongue out. The blond wasn't pleased with being teased, but it was better for Rob to be trolling him rather than being paranoid.

Palutena and Ganondorf had a similar conversation on the fifth floor. Poor Rosalina got kicked out to give the couple some time. She was now waiting with the rest of the Smashers even if she wasn't chosen. Palutena hummed seeing how annoyed Ganondorf looked.

"Remember to keep your promise." She said with a wink. "When I win, I expect the D."

"You and your modern language." Ganondorf grumbled. "You will only get what is called the D if you win first place. You have competition and you have been slacking off, so I don't expect you to win."

"You're such an old man." Palutena whined as she continued to cling to him to his annoyance. "I hope you watch over the kids for me. Remember that Pit has to attend to his duties and Pittoo has to go to church. Make sure Dark Pit is back before midnight and don't let him have any sexual intercourse. Also, make sure you talk to Pit about his fiancé. He still thinks you're going to be disappointed with who I set him up with."

"Do I look like their father to you?!" He asked with a gruff.

"You act like one…or a grandpa…"

"I utterly loathe you and I hope you get humiliated in the tournament." Ganondorf told her as a response.

Palutena responded with a small peck on the lips. Ganondorf was too grouchy to return the gesture.

Bayonetta and Corrin were being just as affectionate as the Goddess of Light was being to the King of Evil. The two were in Corrin's room seeing as how Bayonetta had already packed the things she needed for the trip.

"Cere, what is this?" Corrin asked her when she handed him a small bottle that looked like a cologne bottle.

"It's something that was very hard for me to obtain. In fact, it would technically be considered illegal according to those angels."

"W-Wait, what?!"

"This is a little spice called Venus Spice. It's a little aphrodisiac that's used to spice up your night. It's stronger than your average one made 2000 years ago. The angels had outlawed the use of any spice and it's considered illegal to have in other realms as well. However, there is no rule of having it in the Smash Brothers Realm." She smirked seeing how pale Corrin was as she explained this. "I should warn you that I added a few things to it to make things more interesting."

"…Like?"

"Corrin, I want to take our…sexual relationship to the next level. I have been holding off on what I want for you but…"

Corrin knew what she meant. He was still a chicken despite having sex with her multiple times. He wasn't ready to go all out and liked things that would be considered "boring" by Bayonetta's standards.

"When you rub this on you, make sure that you don't relieve yourself."

"H-Huh? Why? Isn't that counterproductive?"

"You see, the products I added in this Venus Spice prevents one from having an orgasm. Because I'm the one who brewed it up, you would only be able to climax when I say so."

The dragon prince's cheeks became as red as her lollipops. It was very endearing to see Corrin get flustered by just explaining what it does. Heck, this would most likely scare him away.

"This spice may be dangerous I admit." Bayonetta began noticing how nervous he was looking. "If you were to put it on today and wait an entire week for me, would you be able to function?"

"Umm…I…I don't know…maybe…I mean…you know me…I usually don't…you know…"

Corrin couldn't even say that he "masturbated". The Nohrian prince wasn't even the type of person to do so. He would fantasize about Bayonetta sometimes, but his mind was simply incapable of being dirty. This was such a contrast to Bayonetta who thought about her dragon prince more than she would admit.

"Only use this if you are certain you want to take our sexual relationship to the next level. Otherwise, just leave it. I will be back in a week anyway with the win under my belt. You know I live to please you."

She added that last sentence just to get him riled up. It worked to a certain extent seeing the hard stare he gave her.

"I wish you luck at the tournament." He told her as he slowly approached her. He didn't even hesitate to wrap his arms around her neck when he stood on his tippy toes to kiss her. This was probably one of the few times he would be this bold.

Bayonetta had no problem letting Corrin explore her mouth. She was usually the one who dominated their make out session. She simply lowered her arms toward his waist tempting to go under his cape and start pulling his pants down.

"It's going to be so odd not being able to cum without you…"

His sudden words caught her completely off guard as she let go of him. Corrin noticed the surprised expression she wore and giggled.

"Now that's underhanded." Bayonetta groaned. "If I could bring you to the Witch Hunter Realm, I would. Unfortunately, Master Hand is obeying their rules and only allowing those who were chosen to enter the tournament…and Calum."

"I'm capable of being as lewd as you are Cere…" Corrin told her while giving her an adorable look. "I just have to wait a week until anything magical happens."

"Really…are you doing this on purpose? You know that I have to leave soon."

"Maybe that will get you to win faster?"

She wouldn't know that. The nerfs pretty much prevented her from getting the kills early. When she was training with Cloud, it frustrated her to know that matches would take longer and that she had to actually work now to get the kill. In the end, she still was able to kick Cloud's ass since he was simply terrible off stage against her.

Speaking of Cloud…

"Are you two done yet? It's almost time to go."

Cloud had been waiting for the couple to finish their conversation. He had been waiting outside the room for at least fifteen minutes now. Cloud probably would have given them privacy had it not been for Master Hand bitching about how all the couples were late. It would be in Bayonetta's character to try and have sex before she had to leave. He was tasked to make sure that wasn't the case even though it was heading there.

"Mr. Moody, you are too impatient for your own good." Bayonetta hummed as she gave him a wink. "I was just about to head out."

"It sounded like you were going to push Corrin on the bed, but whatever. I'm not going to be yelled at because you're still horny."

"You're no fun."

Cloud left the two alone again, but they would end up following him shortly afterward. Corrin left the bottle in his room so Master Hand wouldn't get a glimpse of it. Master Hand was going to be gone for the entire week too leaving Crazy Hand in charge unless the left hand decided to leave and watch the matches in person.

"I hope all of you Smashers are prepared." Master Hand told them. "The last thing I want is for you to complain about forgetting something…and don't ask for your significant other to come along if they are not to participate. Only guests are allowed in."

"Does anyone know how we're getting to the Witch Hunter Realm?" Calum asked. "You usually just teleport us to the location if you're being generous."

"Normally, I would do that, but the witch hunters insist we actually take the train to the Witch Hunter Realm."

The Smashers were puzzled by this. At the mention of a train, a familiar "choo-choo" could be heard in the distance. Rob swore that this realm wasn't normal if there was an invisible railroad that created itself in the sky for the train to go on. The train was huge, but should have been a given seeing as how the train was not just for the Smashers to use. Tourists that were going to watch the Witch Hunter tournament had boarded the train in different parts of the galaxy. These people had to pay to get in, so the train was obviously of high class.

Some of the Smashers were unfamiliar with what a train was. The closest thing was the Spirit Track stage during the early days of the fourth tournament with Toon Link sometimes operating the train when he wasn't fighting the Smashers. This train was on an entirely different level. Shulk stared at the train in awe and immediately felt annoyed that he wasn't chosen to participate in the tournament therefore could not board the train and see what it looked like on the inside.

"Shulk, you're drooling." The male tactician pointed out to the seer who had sparkles in his eyes seeing the train.

"What?! No…I'm not…"

"ALL ABOARD THE HYPE TRAIN!"

Whoever was in charge of the train would probably be punched for memeing when he reached his destination. Master Hand suspected that it was one of the witch hunters that were in charge of the train. If he were to talk to the conductor later, he probably would be replaced with his friend that was there.

"So why aren't we using a teleporter again?" Cloud asked immediately being turned off by the conductor's voice.

"I'm being lazy and the witch hunters insist we use their train." Master Hand answered. "It's time to get onboard. Make sure you have everything. Say good-bye to your friends and family even though it will only be a week."

At times like these, having a cellphone and a laptop would have been nice to have. Most Smashers didn't have either of these things due to the time period they were in thus it would be difficult for them to actually implement it when they returned from the tournament (thus some Smashers gave up trying to learn the ropes). Cloud was one of the few Smashers who was smart enough to use his money to buy a cellphone in Smashopolis, implement numbers into said phone and then toss it over to someone who needed it. In which case, Cloud through it to his roommate so he could still speak to him and Bayonetta. Bayonetta herself had one, but found it pretty useless in the long run due to how she was used to visiting someone in person.

"Keep it Corrin. You're going to need it." Cloud told him.

"T-Thanks…"

"You can ask Pit or Dark Pit to teach you how to use it. If not, I'm pretty sure there are others who know how to use the phone."

Corrin nodded his head slowly at Cloud's words. He looked up and saw some of the Smashers were already getting on the train. Marth gave a wink to Roy who was watching from afar being entering the train in style. Ryu also gave a wave to the redhead swordsmen before boarding the train. MK gave something to Kirby which was a list of things for the pink puffball to do when he was gone. Chances were that Kirby was going to eat the list and do nothing, but this was Kirby we're talking about.

"Cere…"

"Corrin, I will be fine. The phone is meant to keep in touch. I might not respond that much, so you're better off calling Mr. Moody."

"Right…Cere…can you watch over Rob for me? You see how he's been acting as of late. He's still worried about that incident."

The Umbra Witch hated playing babysitter, but who was she to refuse Corrin's request. Cloud would be forced to help Bayonetta seeing as how he was probably going to be hanging out with her the entire week.

"I will, but I think you two are just worrywarts at this point." Bayonetta stated with an exaggerated sigh. "See you in a week, dear. Remember not to use that _thing_ if you're not ready for it."

Corrin blushed at the thought but he promised her he would make his decision by then. Once Rob got on the train, the two members of the Salt Trio and Master Hand would be the last people to get on the train before the train closed behind them.

"NEXT STOP THE WITCH HUNTER REALM!"

The train was very quick and took off almost immediately. Shulk would still question how the train was able to open a portal in the sky that would take them straight to outer space before disappearing.

* * *

Master Hand didn't skip a beat the minute the train took off to the Witch Hunter Realm. He had ordered the Smashers to gather around as he listed the room arrangements in the Witch Hunter Realm. Suffice to say, some of the Smashers were far from pleased.

"Michiko, I thought you knew me better. I slay angels for a living. Why are you pairing me up with the Goddess who commands the angels?" Bayonetta asked as she glared at the green haired Goddess.

"I could say the same thing. The Goddess of Light should not be in the room with someone who embraces the dark."

Cloud made a snarky comment about how Palutena had no problem sleeping with Ganondorf, but Master Hand ignored him in favor of calling them out immediately.

"I did consider the chemistry between you two, but I realized that because you ladies are powerful that it would be easier to watch each other's back. Palutena, you can make sure Bayonetta doesn't do anything that could tarnish the Smash Brother's reputation. Her powers will be reduced in half, so I don't expect her to cause anyone any trouble, but this is for precaution's sake. Bayonetta, you can also make sure that Palutena does start a fight with Ares and drag her family into her family drama."

Both ladies were far from pleased at the idea of having to play babysitter with each other. Samus was just glad she wouldn't have to deal with either of them and got stuck with her roommate. Peach was very easy to get along with, so the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom had no problems being roomed with the bounty hunter.

The other rooms were tolerable for the Smashers with the sole exception being Meta Knight being stuck with Falcon. Master Hand knew someone was going to suffer from being in the same room as the F-Zero racer, so he paired him up with Meta Knight who would be wise enough to just not be in the room that much. K the Villager would be roomed with Calum and Greninja (as Master Hand would allow the trainer and the Pokémon to remain together). Fox and Falco were a given and same could be said about Marth and Ike. Sonic was paired with Ryu, but chances were that Sonic wasn't going to be in the room that much either. This left Rob with Cloud and while the tactician was hoping he would be roomed with Marth, Cloud was someone he could tolerate. Cloud was Corrin's roommate after all, so it wouldn't hurt to try and get along with him.

"If something happens, you can complain to me later. For now, I expect you to be on your best behaviors. Do not let me down and have fun between the matches. The Witch Hunter Realm is a gorgeous place. As long as you all remember what time the matches start, you can do whatever you want except get in trouble. I do not want to hear any complaints from the witch hunters."

Staying out of trouble sounded so foreign to Bayonetta. Where was the fun in being an obedient fighter? She wasn't held down by any rules, but she did promise to tone it down if only to not let Corrin worry. She sighed thinking how childish she was being.

The Smashers were allowed to do what they wanted until they arrived in the Witch Hunter Realm. Most of the Smashers had resorted to having small conversations. Sonic whined about how he couldn't run around freely on the train. Fox was lecturing Sonic to not be such a brat about it. Marth was telling Ike a story about what happened during the Melee days resorting in Falco butting in and correcting him to the annoyance of the Hero King. This was made worse when Falcon would interrupt Falco and then start fibbing about things that did not happen during the second tournament. Samus and Peach were having idle chitchat about Zelda not being voted in and being able to hang out with her. Ryu had resorted to moving to a corner away from everyone. Meta Knight took to the hanger where the Smashers put their stuff for peace and quiet. Calum was enjoying the sights with Greninja and K who was trying to go through the glass screen. Palutena had decided to continue her conversation with Master Hand in another cart that one would assume as the private area where only the VIP could go (Bayonetta would snark to herself how Palutena was such a privileged Smasher in comparison to everyone else). Cloud had rested against the door with Bayonetta sitting down next to him. The Umbra Witch intended to take a nap, but knew it would be impossible with how loud the train was. Rob had made sure to pack the recent volume of Dominion's Descent so he could and calm himself down.

"Hopefully you're ready." The ex-SOLDIER said causing Bayonetta to glance toward him. "I don't expect things to be smooth sailing."

"That would be boring if that were the case."

Rob let out an agitated sigh with how gung-ho Bayonetta was with wanting an exciting adventure in the Witch Hunter Realm. The grey eyed witch really didn't want to babysit the tactician magician besides her. He was capable of taking care of himself, and he was a pain in the ass to deal with in comparison to Corrin.

The train took one hour to reach the Witch Hunter Realm. Bayonetta has been to this realm before and it gave off a similar feel to the Gates of Hell (she wondered if Rodin was inspired by the design, but she doubted it). The Witch Hunter Realm was an incredibly dark place. One would think that it was a realm that never saw the daylight and was shrouded in darkness. In exchange for living in the dark, neon lights of every color would be lit everywhere depending on the district.

There were seven districts in the Witch Hunter Realm but only six of them were open to the public. The one that was not normally accessed was the white temple (or castle as Bayonetta could never tell what it was given how poorly designed it was) where the God of War Ares stayed. He had the Seven Chosen Witch Hunters who worked directly under him stay in his home. This was also the location where the Knights of the Witch Realm resided. Overall, it was the most important places that required a reason to even be near it.

The other six areas were color coded based on what it was. The arena where the Smashers would be fighting in was red. The love hotel district was pink. The shopping district was yellow. The academy where any and all races (except witches) are accepted in order to become witch hunters that will protect the galaxy was color coded green. The pub area where witch hunters and mercenaries from around the world come together for information gathering for their next bounty was color coded blue. Finally, the place where the Smashers were staying would be orange. This final area was simply dubbed Halloween Town because everyone just loves wearing costumes in this area. Bayonetta would think that the blue district was where all the fun was, but it was the orange district where interesting things gone down. Granted, the love hotel district was her favorite, but it wouldn't have any purpose without Corrin by her side.

Bayonetta wasn't exactly thrilled though to be entering the Witch Hunter Realm. Immediately, she felt a powerful jolt hit her body. She pretended that nothing was wrong, but Cloud noticed the surprised expression she wore for a short second before her usual smug expression returned.

"WE HAVE NOW ARRIVED IN THE WITCH HUNTER REALM'S HALLOWEEN TOWN. PLEASE PREPARE TO DEPART. DO NOT FORGET YOUR BELONGINGS." The person over the intercom spoke with a robotic voice.

Master Hand had returned to gather the Smashers. They would be using the special door meant for them while the other passengers would be using the regular doors. Once he made sure all sixteen Smashers (and Calum) were accounted for, he lead the Smashers out of the train where they would be greeted by their guide. The guide was the last person Rob wanted to see especially after the reveal of voter fraud. Bayonetta (and a few other Smashers) saw Rob nearly jump seeing who their guide was.

"W-What are you doing here?!" Rob ended up asking. The façade he built up crumbled in the man's presence. "I thought they fired you after what happened, Acedia!"

Bayonetta would best remember that name. The man in front of them would be one of the toughest enemies she ever had to deal with. The man before them smirked as he took a step forward. The games have officially begun in his book…

* * *

 **Me: TBC with 6396 words.**

 **Li: There is suspense…and I'm treated like a child.**

 **Me: You are a child, Li. I think this might be the only chapter that will start in the middle and then go back in time until that point of the story to add suspense on who the other Smashers are that got brainwashed. Notes!**

 **1\. Normally Bayonetta wouldn't end up in a situation like this. You'll have to continue reading to see how she could end up like this. However, between the nerf that Master Hand warned her in Ban Hammer combined with her powers being cut in half due to being in the Witch Hunter Realm as a precaution for the witch hunters, normal things like being impaled actually injure her. She's also unable to fight back against the physically stronger Smashers if she's unable to focus and summon her demon companions.**

 **2\. I swear all the couples I listed off are seriously horny. In my universe, I legit feel that Dark Pit with whoever he's with and Fox/Sonic are the only non-horny couples. I mean, my sweet Corrin will remain pure but since this story is after he confesses to Bayonetta and has sex with her multiple times, he can't maintain that sweet cinnabon status. Granted, he still is one, but now he's lewd too.**

 **3\. The Smashers taking the train is more of me wanting to make a meme of the "Hype Train". But in all serious, it makes sense for there to be a space railroad that allows anyone to be able to go from realm to realm without the need of a teleporter. Like, Smashopolis doesn't have flying cars or anything. You still end up taking a boat to some locations in the Nintendo universe, but a train makes sense for the Witch Hunter Realm seeing how modern the place is.**

 **4\. If the Golden Land is supposed to be surreal in terms of appearance (bright with gold, purple and green colors), the Witch Hunter Realm is sci-fi in appearance (dark with black, and all colors that glow in the dark). I got a lot of motivation from looking at Neon Lights and then thinking of what the Netherworld Academy looked like in Disgaea 3 in terms of the lighting. There is also inspiration drawn from Halloween Town from The Nightmare before Christmas with how everyone seems to be in costumes to look cool.**

 **That's it. Reviews are appreciated. Ja ne!**


	2. Unsettling Feeling

**Brave Shine**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Super Smash Brothers. That goes to Nintendo. I also don't own Bayonetta as that franchise belongs to Platinum Games. The only characters I own are those from the Golden Land, angels from Skyworld including the royal bodyguards, Angel Assembly and archangels along with all the other angels and of course the witch hunters.**

 **Summary: After training (or relaxing in Bayonetta's case), the Witch Hunter tournament has finally began. The sixteen Smashers are taken away to another realm with no way of returning until the tournament is finished. While Ares reassures Palutena and the Smashers that everything is secured for the tournament, Rob fears that something terrible is going to happen. He's not wrong seeing as how Acedia finally instigates his plan to eliminate the Smashers chosen for the tournament. His end goal is to claim a certain tactician for himself without the interference of powerful adversaries under the law of the Witch Hunter Realm. Will the Smashers involved in the tournament set aside the glory for the tournament to protect their friend or are the glory days for these Smashers done?**

 **Pairing: Corrin/Bayonetta, Rob/Shulk, Fox/Sonic, Ganondorf/Palutena, implied Cloud/Bayonetta, Samus/Peach and dark OC (Acedia)/Rob**

 **Rated: T (for Teen) but will be bumped up to M later but its MA (for Archive of Our Own)**

 **Genre: Action/Adventure, Suspense, Drama, Friendship, some Romance and Humor**

 **Warning: Swearing, extreme sexual situations, violence, stalking, creepiness (ramped up in comparison to** _ **Ban Hammer**_ **) and unintentional OOC**

 **This is a tournament arc. I have a lot of these planned out that focused on battles, but this one will pretty much deal with the plot that started in** _ **Ban Hammer**_ **. This will be multiple chapters and split into two plots: What happens during Smash and the political drama outside of it. Enjoy!**

Chapter 2: Unsettling Feeling

* * *

Despite Rob being startled by Acedia's sudden appearance, the demon gave him and the Smashers a pleasant smile. In fact, he gave a small bow to him which was odd for a demon to do.

"It is a pleasure to see you so soon." Acedia spoke softly as if trying to appear humble and polite for a demon. Those who were familiar with how demons spoke knew that he was faking the gentle tone. Peach was easily fooled.

"He's cute." She whispered to Samus causing the bounty hunter to role her eyes. She felt bad for Mario seeing how Peach easily gushed over attractive guys who were also polite.

It wasn't just Acedia that was greeting them. Behind the blond demon was a muscular male with red hair. From a distance, it was hard to tell what color eyes he had especially with how he fashioned his hair. His hair was messy for the most part with his bangs covering his eyes as he stood in the distance. His medium length hair was tied into a top knot. Palutena would mock the man later for trying to copy the Japanese gods in terms of style.

The man growled seeing the Goddess of Light before him. He folded his eyes as if trying to show up how much muscle he has gained over the years. Palutena noted how his war hammer was attached to his back and he wasn't wearing his battle armor like he normally would. He wore a black tank top that continued to show how manly he was.

"Eww, Athena!" He groaned seeing the green haired Goddess.

"Glad to see you're doing well Ares." Palutena responded with a cold smile. "Compared to everyone else here, you're very…casual."

"Zelda just woke me up!" Ares shouted. "She's getting everyone now!"

Before anyone could ask why Zelda was helping this odd man out, Palutena quickly reminded them that Ares' right hand woman just happened to be an elf named Zelda. Samus wondered if this Zelda was the spitting image of the one still at the mansion.

"Is that why she's not the one greeting us?" Palutena questioned.

"Well…sort of. She said Acedia can handle the quick tour before we take you to the hotel you all will be staying at."

Master Hand looked at the God of War as if he said something stupid. He wasn't going to be staying in the same location as the fighters. Ares knew that. Master Hand would be staying in the same area where Ares and the seven most powerful witch hunters resided.

"Lord Ares if I may…" Acedia began catching the redhead's attention. "I would like to give a short tour before we head to the hotel."

"Hmm…but Athena already knows the locations…"

"Athena?" Ike had to ask. Ares said it the first time, but he found it odd that he kept insisting on the name.

"That's Lady Palutena's real name." Acedia responded with a smirk. "Lord Ares and Lady Palutena are brother and sister."

"Would have fooled me." Ike couldn't help but mock. Then again, Ike had a hard time keeping his thoughts in check. Marth had to tap him on the shoulder to remind him he was in the presence of the guy in charge of the Witch Hunter Realm. The last thing Ike wanted was to fall out of Ares' favor before the tournament even began.

Ares did give the approval for Acedia to give the Smashers a tour of the Witch Hunter Realm. They could have easily walked but due to how modernized the city was, it would just be easy to just go to the largest section of the city with the map and then talk about the locations from there.

Rob wasn't really in the mood to go on the tour. He suddenly felt exhausted having seen Acedia in person. No one would believe him if he said Acedia was the one who caused him problems not too long ago. He just had to suck it up and follow the other Smashers. Palutena was free to go with Ares due to wanting to catch up with her sibling (despite insulting him within hearing range).

Just because Rob was following behind the Smashers doesn't mean he was listening. He observed Acedia carefully as he took the group to the main area. The white haired tactician drowned his voice out when he explained how the Witch Hunter Realm worked. He didn't care so much except when he heard about how the seven most powerful witch hunters would be at the dinner table. They weren't going to the hotel after all.

"This is why you must always be in groups of two." Acedia had finished explaining after showing them the map. "Because all sorts of races can enter the Witch Hunter Realm, you must always be on your guard. Granted, you guys are the Smashers and can handle yourselves but it's better to be safe than sorry."

The entire time, Acedia had been eyeing Rob. Rob had zoned out, so the blond noticed he wasn't listening. He smirked realizing he would take advantage of Rob not listening to him about the locations in the Witch Hunter Realm.

Acedia would then take the Smashers to the building next to the hotel they were staying at. Palutena and Ares were already sitting down on another table that was meant for them. The seven witch hunters have been gathered to do the serving instead of the usual servants that angered some of them greatly.

Some of the Smashers were aware of who half of the witch hunters were. Virtue was a Mothman who insisted he was a human and just happened to be the strongest witch hunter of the bunch and he was the one that showed up the most at the mansion to mess with Pit. Jingle was Virtue's alien sidekick who always followed the Mothman wherever he went. Compared to Virtue, she was a friendly individual. Too friendly to some of the Smashers given she was an alien. Pit surprisingly had no problem talking with her despite her race.

The other five witch hunters weren't well known to the Smashers. Pit has communicated with the two witch hunters known as Julius and Alacryn Santos who were the captain and first mate of the Celestial Pirates. Both were powerful angels who went rogue and decided to serve under the God of War instead. However, they didn't do their job as witch hunters often and were more likely to steal constellations under the watchful eye of Hermes instead of eliminate a powerful adversary. As a result, these two were rarely around in the Witch Hunter Realm, but it was probably for the best seeing that they were angels not to be messed with.

Zelda was the fifth member as pointed out beforehand. Being an elf was just a coincidence…along with having a similar color hair as the Queen of Hyrule. The similarities end there. Her eyes were an auburn color and she wore glasses over them. She had a slim figure that was more revealing than what the Queen of Hyrule had on in general. Because she was an elf, her clothes were made from plants. One would guess that they were made from the leaves of the rarest trees in the Evergreen Galaxy. Zelda wasn't showing too much skin though. She had her leaf like dress that covered her stomach up but showed her cleavage and some leg. She wore shiny burgundy colored high heels that went well with her dress. She gave off this cold aura that was different from the other witch hunters in the realm. Only Acedia could rival the icy aura that she had.

The sixth member also appeared to be a clone of the powerful succubus from Scotland who was known as Morrigan Aensland. She was Morrigan in name and demon race only. This Morrigan was shorter than the Morrigan that Ryu knew. She had fluffy orange hair and huge amber eyes to go with her eyes. Her succubus outfit was considered a standard one with the major difference being her breasts were revealing from the underside. While the DarkStalker had a purple motif, this Morrigan had a gold motif. Despite being a succubus, she seemed to be really nice.

The last member was a handsome devil (literally) named Chun-Kei. On appearance, he looked to be an incubus, but that tail he had was certainly not an incubus. It looked like a lion's tail, but the person in question didn't have any lion ears or main to go with it (unless you counted his hair). He had messy blue hair, blue eyes and wore a blue headset around his neck. Compared to everyone else, he was in the most casual clothing imaginable. He wore a bulky navy blue jacket with baggy jeans. Chun-Kei didn't care much about the guests seeing as he was too busy playing on his blue iphone. It would take Zelda yelling at him to put the phone away.

The Smashers were treated to whatever they wanted on the menu, but despite having the choice in terms of appetizers and the main course, the drinks were chosen for them. This annoyed Smashers like Samus who just wanted water, but Acedia had insisted they drink a new drink that had been made by the elves in the Evergreen Galaxy.

"The drink's fine!" Palutena hummed as she had demanded that Julius serve her another one. "I think I'll have another."

"Please don't get drunk now." Ares could be heard murmuring as he ordered the captain of the Celestial Pirates to fetch a drink to Julius' annoyance.

The food was prepared quickly for the Smashers to dine on. Marth (who was sitting next to Rob) teased the tactician for not ordering that much. Rob didn't know why but the minute he took a sip of the drink he was given, he was starting to feel a little whoozy. He didn't get an alcoholic drink like everyone else (you could tell by the color of said drink). However, he felt really light headed as if he drank something that shut his mind off. He weakly glared at Acedia assuming he did something to the drink. Marth was kind enough to ask for some water for the white haired magician, but the water wasn't really going to do Rob any justice at this point.

After a couple of minutes into the meal, Master Hand decided it was time to go over the rules of the tournament. Even if some of the Smashers were still eating, they would need to stop and listen. Master Hand was sitting at the end of the table and was able to use the technology that was in the room to project the bracket for tournament.

"As you can see, who you will be fighting has been decided for tomorrow. Until winners and losers semis, the matches will be best two out of three. Once you arrived at semis, it will be three out of five sets. This is different from the usual two stock single elimination tournaments you're used to seeing. This will put your endurance to the test especially if you are sent to losers. You have a shot at grand finals if you make it through the stacked loser's bracket. Only top four will be paid out for this tournament."

Most of the Smashers were aware that the lower you placed the less money you received. In most situations, only first and second got the money because of how stingy Master Hand was. He was being generous this time around due to it being a tournament not completely sponsored by him. Knowing the right hand, he might just dock the pay of the Smashers even if they won prize money.

"During the first game, each player gets to ban two stages. Whoever wins that game gets to ban a stage. The winner can also not choose a stage they have won on when it gets to the three out of five sets. This will only reset if the bracket gets reset. I'm going to be generous on what stages can be picked this time around. Besides the usual stages allowed in tournament, I am allowing Halberd, Isle Delfino, Skyloft, Jungle Japes, Castle Siege and Clock Tower. Choose your bans carefully as a result."

Marth snickered at how Skyloft was finally allowed after Link complained about how that stage should be legal to fight on. If only he was voted into this tournament would he have counterpicked to that stage quickly.

"We have a week to do this tournament, so tomorrow…there will be twelve matches. If you lose in round one on the winner's side, you will automatically be fighting in losers in order to advance to the next round. Please be prepared to work yourself should you end up in losers…but you'll all be trying your best, right?"

Palutena wondered if Master Hand would be able to space the matches properly. Since they were probably on a different timeframe from other realms, she expected that it might take them even longer to finish up because Ares didn't want his realm to be the same as everyone else. Granted, it was hard to tell time in the Witch Hunter Realm due to how the sun never rose in the sky.

At least grand finals would be on the last day if things ran smoothly.

* * *

The room arrangements were odd. The Smashers got a huge hotel all to themselves, but it also meant that they all weren't going to be on the same floor. You would think they would all be able to have a separate room, but Acedia had reminded them that it's dangerous to be alone in the Witch Hunter Realm hence why everyone was grouped together. The problem was how despite the hotel having at least twelve rooms per floor, four Smashers would reside on each floor on the opposite sides. Acedia said something about privacy, but it was all too convenient. There were five floors in the hotel like in Smash Brothers Mansion and the two ways to move around also included stares and an elevator. The ladies got the top floor to themselves leaving the men with the second, third and fourth floor.

When a Goddess and a Goddess slayer are put in the same together, one expects things to end poorly. In fact, it probably would have if both weren't ordered to look out for one another. If one of them made a slip up, they could tattle to Master Hand. Bayonetta knew how spoiled Palutena was. After sleeping for 500 years, she needed to catch up with what has occurred not only in her world but outside of her world as well. Palutena has gotten away with so much stuff that Bayonetta just wanted to put a gun to the Goddess' head and shoot her like the rest of her victims. Unfortunately, just because Palutena was lazy in Smash didn't mean she was a formidable foe outside of Smash.

"I'm taking this side of the room." Palutena declared as she took the bed that was near the window.

"Who gave you permission to take the bed with the better view?"

"Me of course. I'm ranked higher than you on this popularity poll." She hummed seeing the dark expression Bayonetta had. "You had to ask Corrin to get you back on."

"…Come again?"

"Corrin would have been chosen had he not brought the rigging to Master Hand. He's such a good boy. He reminds me of Pit…almost…"

Bayonetta curled her fist into a ball. She gave a malicious smile as a response. In the past, Bayonetta would have laughed at Corrin being compared to a dog. Now, she cared for him too much to see him as anything but her partner. Not like she would ever admit that to anyone.

"You talk big despite your lack of…results so far this tournament." Bayonetta started. "Honestly, when you're handicapped, you can't do anything."

"I never bother going all out." Palutena hummed. "That's why I never get any complaints…unlike you."

 _This bitch._ Bayonetta thought darkly to herself. Palutena had her way with words while still being pleasant.

Palutena let out a cute yawn as she sat on the bed that she claimed as her own for the week. Bayonetta was this close to doing something about it but stopped herself. The tournament bracket showed that they were on opposite sides of the bracket. If Palutena was lazy, she wouldn't even make it that far. The Goddess of Light was so confident in winning that she looked down on the competition. Bayonetta just needed to prove that even with her "nerfs" that Palutena was still a lame fighter that no johns would save her from humiliation.

"I think I'm going to go bother Pit." Palutena hummed as she took some of her things and went to the bathroom. "You should talk to your dragon too."

Bayonetta wouldn't need to call Corrin tonight. She wasn't feeling lonely at all. She would most likely hang out with Cloud if anything else.

* * *

Calum had neatly arranged his things in the room and made sure that Greninja would get his own space. The Kalos trainer really cared for his frog Pokémon and expected great things for him. Granted, he wished that he was able to teach his Pokémon how to swim, but that wouldn't apply to this tournament. Greninja just needed to be careful in the bracket. He was already making waves and won the popularity poll for a reason, so if things go well…then maybe…

"K, where are you going?"

Calum had to drop his train of thought looking at the small Villager he was roomed with. K was a restless kid, but that was a given seeing as how he was the Mayor of Smashville. K was always doing something to help his town…even though he had controversial idea of making the place great. K may have been creepy but he hadn't murdered anyone…yet.

"I am going out."

"This late?!"

"Yes. Why?"

"Y-You're a kid. You should be going to bed early. The match is tomorrow."

K stared at Calum with his emotionless eyes. Calum shivered when K didn't respond immediately.

"I do what I want."

The Kalos trainer was terrible at convincing K to do something. The red shirt Villager would just open the door and leave without another word. Greninja would look at his trainer and shake his head with disapproval causing Calum to groan in frustration.

"I know. I know…I'm terrible with kids."

"Gre…" Greninja would croak before going into the corner of the room to mediate.

* * *

Meta Knight didn't even bother unpacking the minute he got to his room. It was already a minute and he tired of having Captain Falcon as a roommate. The F-Zero racer had rushed to the bathroom to check himself out in the mirror before striking a pose. He commented on how clean the bathroom was, but it was a given seeing as how the Smashers were the guests of honor.

"I AM GOING TO HIT THE STREETS AND LOOK AROUND!" Meta Knight could hear Falcon scream as the Star Warrior was already heading out the door. "WANT TO COME WITH ME?"

"…I will pass on this one." Meta Knight told him softly. "I prefer to be alone…in silence."

Falcon really had no indoor voice. Everyone could hear him even if they weren't on the same floor. It was really abhorrent to the point it would be better if Falcon was outside for the day. Meta Knight closed the door and headed straight to the room that Marth and Ike were in. They were on the same floor so it was easy for Meta Knight to just waltz in especially since Ike left the door open.

"You really need to close the door." Meta Knight had told Ike who was too busy unpacking his clothes to care what the small swordsmen had to say. "Where is Marth?"

"Singing in the shower." Ike answered nonchalantly. "Don't tell him I left the door opened. I want to see how he'll react if anyone came walking in while he was singing."

Marth was humming his victory fanfare while in the shower. Some foreign words were coming out of his mouth while he was singing. Meta Knight closed his eyes before shaking his head. Besides Rob, everyone was rather chill the night before the tournament. They should all be preparing themselves to not be humiliated tomorrow. All eyes would be on them after all…

"I do wonder how Link puts up with Marth's singing though." Ike continued bringing Meta Knight back to reality. "I wouldn't be able to handle Marth's singing if I were his roommate…"

"You don't say…"

* * *

Peach was still being treated like a princess even if she was in another realm. It was one thing for her to be treated like one in the mansion. She got to choose the color of the room she was in along with the bedsheets and the furniture in the room. The Witch Hunters felt that she would get that privilege here to and gave her a pink room with Lovely furniture you would see in Smashville houses. The bedsheets were decorated with hearts and the room had a sweet aroma to it. Samus was feeling nauseous walking into the room. She just couldn't catch a break with the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom.

"They treat you better than they treat Palutena I see." Samus told her roommate. "They didn't arrange the room in her favor…"

"I'm so happy!" Peach exclaimed ignoring Samus' snarky comment. "Ares worked so hard to make sure we can enjoy ourselves."

"It's actually just you…" Samus muttered but was ignored due to Peach's squealing.

"Hmm…I wonder where the kitchen is…"

"It's the first floor."

"Oh! Okay! Are you going to go down with me or are you going to see Douglas?"

Samus let out an annoyed sigh remembering that Captain Falcon was a participant.

"I would rather walk with you than deal with Falcon's obnoxious voice before tomorrow. He'll give me a headache."

"…Did you just pre-John?"

"No…let's just…unpack and go…"

Peach simply giggled at Samus' response. The bounty hunter wondered why Peach would push her with the F-Zero racer after he failed to win her heart for two tournament seasons now.

* * *

The minute Ryu found his room was the minute that Ryu collapsed on the bed. Forget trying to unpack your things. He was just going to sleep and wake up energized for tomorrow. Sonic had poked him a couple of times, but upon realizing that his roommate was going to stay like that for the rest of the night, the blue hedgehog gave up. The blue wonder was generous enough to arrange the things in the room for Ryu…sonic speed of course. He zipped around the room grabbing things that belonged to the martial artist and placed it where they needed to be. Sonic did that to his own things as well and in five minutes, everything was arranged the way Sonic wanted.

Now he was bored. Ryu was already proving to be a boring roommate. He wouldn't be talking to him that much, so Sonic left to go find Fox's room in the hotel. Sonic and Ryu got the second floor along with Calum, Greninja and K. Fox and Falco got the third floor along with Rob and Cloud. Finally, Marth and Ike were on the fourth floor with Meta Knight and Captain Falcon. Sonic wished that Cloud and Rob switched places with him and Ryu. It would have been easier to nag Fox early in the morning, but it wouldn't stop Sonic from zipping up the stairs to knock on their door anyway.

Sonic decided to take the elevator since he wasn't in any rush. To his surprise, he ended up bumping into Steel that was also riding the elevator.

"Yo, Steel! It's been a while!" Sonic greeted. "What's crackin'?"

The Minotaur just snickered at Sonic's casual greeting.

"I was invited here to watch the tournament by Acedia's request." Steel explained. "I was hoping that Acedia would allow a few Smashers not on the list to come along, but he was rather adamant about only having sixteen Smashers here."

Sonic tilted his head in confusion. "Were you able to find Pit?"

"Unfortunately…I wasn't. He is very slippery." Steel let out an exaggerated sigh when he said that. "He really hates me."

"I would too if I beat him in battle."

Steel smiled at the thought. "You have no idea. That boy is very prideful, but I think you know that. You are his friend after all."

Sonic did recall that when he brought up Steel's name, the angel captain froze in place before cursing the hedgehog out for interacting with Steel. Steel obviously wanted to make amends but Pit was still butthurt about losing to him. If only Sonic knew…

While they were heading to Fox and Falco's room, the two members of Star Fox were in a "deep" conversation about tomorrow. Fox had warned his friend that he needed to be careful with how he handled himself the entire week.

"Falco, I'm serious. This might be your only chance to redeem yourself. I know how much you care about how people see you here…if you do well…then people will see you're not washed up."

"This will be a piece of cake Fox." Falco told him simply. "I'll be showing that witch why it was a mistake to assume I was free! She may have been around for more than five hundred years, but she sure didn't spend that time making waves back in the day."

"Falco…"

At this point, Sonic knocked on the door. The leader of Star Fox knew it was Sonic and went to open it. He smiled seeing his friend on the other side with his usual grin…but frowned the minute he saw Steel.

"…He's here too?" Was the first thing that came out of Fox's mouth the minute he saw the Minotaur behind the hero of Mobius.

"Uh-huh! Isn't that funny? He disappeared for a while and now he's back! He has a great story to tell Fox!"

Suddenly, Fox didn't want to leave the room. If it meant having to endure being in this menacing Minotaur's presence, he would rather go to bed early and prepare for tomorrow. Unfortunately, he wasn't Ryu and couldn't afford to be rude in front of Steel for the sake of not appearing rude.

* * *

Cloud noticed something about Rob that the other Smashers probably already knew about. No matter how many times he and everyone else were reassured that they were in safe hands in the Witch Hunter Realm, Rob chose to remain uneasy. Instead of admitting to his paranoia, Rob would rather lie about why he was feeling under the weather.

"We will be fine here. It will only be a week in this realm before we go back. You don't need to be scared."

"I…I just ate something bad." Rob murmured weakly. It was tempting for him to run to the bathroom and open the toilet, but he refused to do that in front of the ex-SOLDIER.

"Do you want me to get you some water?"

"N-No…I'll manage."

"You sure?"

Rob didn't bother answering that one. He was obviously paranoid, but felt that it was better to keep his feelings to himself. Shulk told him things would be fine and he was reminded constantly how nothing can happen at the tournament. Rob wouldn't believe it. Acedia was not to be trusted.

"…You know…you should open up to the others." Cloud said suddenly catching him off guard. "I know you're willing to talk to Pit, Shulk, Corrin or anyone from your world but they're not here. You're going to have to open up to the others."

"Like you?" Rob asked darkly. "You're the last person I would open up to."

"Hmm?"

"You're less interested in the tournament and more interested in finding a way to get out of your contract." The tactician explained. "If you weren't held against your will, I might trust you, but you haven't been here long enough to understand why I wouldn't…"

Cloud shook his head as a response. He tried to reason with the shorter Smasher, but it was pointless. He was better off leaving the tactician to wallow in his own self-pity and finding Bayonetta instead of trying to comfort him. Rob wasn't Corrin. Rob was too stubborn for his own good.

"I'm going to find Bayonetta." Cloud told the younger Smasher. "If you need me, you know where to find me…although I think Bayonetta is going to drag me around the area."

The minute Cloud decided to step out (buster sword in hand), Rob was quick to shut the door and locking it before rushing to the bathroom. Whatever was served to him, it made his stomach churn.

* * *

Even when all the Smashers have gone to bed, Rob found it impossible to sleep. It must have been his nerves getting to him. Tomorrow, he would have to perform with the rest of the Smashers and he wasn't up to the challenge in comparison to everyone else. No matter how much he trained, there was no way he would be able to win. He would be humiliated first before anything else.

Since he wasn't going to sleep anyway, Rob found it would be a better idea to walk around and clear his mind. The tactician decided to head to the kitchen area in the hotel and get some free water before heading back to the room. As long as he didn't leave the building, he should be fine. Rob made sure not to wake Cloud up when he quietly left the room.

Outside, Rob would walk until he reached the elevator for the first floor. A small sigh escaped his lips at how long it took despite the fact that there was no one using the elevator at this time. Rob stepped into the elevator once it arrived and pressed the main lobby. The tactician would then wait in silence while the elevator made small beeping noises for every floor it past before reaching the first floor without stopping.

The kitchen was in an odd place. One would think that because there was a window that it would be easy for someone to break in and steal food. The security was at an all-time high according to the God of War, so Rob could only hope that wouldn't happen while they were there. The window allowed for Rob to glance outside and see the magnificent sights before him. Had it not been for the sixteen Smasher rule, Rob could have easily brought Shulk here. He let his paranoia get the best of him when Acedia was giving the "tour" of the place. As a result, he missed locations that he and Shulk could possibly go to.

… _Maybe I am overreacting._ Rob thought to himself. _I can't trust Acedia after Corrin and I found out he was involved with the rigging. Those fat bastards he sent after us really would have hurt me if it weren't for Corrin…yet…it's impossible to frame him as a criminal._ Rob shook his head in annoyance. He needed to get some water now.

Because Rob was so distracted with trying to get some water, he didn't notice that someone was following him from the hallways. He would only notice when he turned around after grabbing a water bottle from the refrigerator. Rob paled immediately seeing the figure before him. He almost screamed but stopped himself from doing so.

"There's no need to be scared of me. I was simply coming into the kitchen to grab a bite to eat."

"A-Acedia…" Rob gasped as he took a step back. "I…" The tactician noticed the evil look Acedia was giving him. Quickly, he forced himself to stop shaking and glare at him back. "…I see."

Acedia chuckled at Rob's attempt at hiding his fear. He had every reason to be scared. After all, if it weren't for Corrin, he would have vanished without a trace.

"I love it when you pretend to be strong." Acedia began as he walked over to the tactician who quickly found himself backed against the wall. If Rob just opened the drawer next to him, he would be able to arm himself very easily. "It makes me want to try harder to break you."

Rob wanted to bark back with a good insult, but a small noise that sounded like a puppy's whine came out instead. Why couldn't he handle being alone with this man?

"Relax. I have no intention of hurting you…at least while at this tournament." Acedia hummed seeing sweat starting to appear on the side of the young Smasher's forehead. "You simply need to keep winning. There is nothing I can do as long as you are in the winner's bracket."

"W-What? Why would that…" Rob shut his mouth. He was probably playing into the stalker's games if he continued to respond. "I…see…"

"Is that it? No confidence in winning tomorrow? Or are you just going to lose after being voted in. Think of your fans…"

"I don't have any fans." Snarked the tactician. "I don't know why you rigged the tournament so I could get in, but unlike everyone else…I am onto you. I…won't let my guard around you even if you say that you won't attack me."

Acedia kept his amused expression especially when Rob had intentions of walking off before the conversation was finished.

"Did those pictures and those drawings really scare you? Those drawings are just in the realm of fiction that could never happen."

"Those pictures…" Rob started. "I wonder how anyone was able to breach the security system for that."

"You would be surprised at the sources I have." Acedia hummed. The white haired tactician gasped feeling Acedia suddenly grasp at his shoulder. "But suppose those drawing became a reality…it wouldn't end up with you being forced into those situations. You'll be drawn to them instead and beg for the chance to have sex. I guarantee it."

"Now who is delusional?" Rob whispered to himself more than Acedia. "You're insane if you think I'm even interested in that sort of thing…and even if I was…it wouldn't be with you…"

"Yes, I know. The Monado Boy is too important to you."

Rob had to leave now. Acedia had both hands on his shoulder at this point and was starting to lean his body against his own. Hopefully Acedia didn't hear Rob's teeth chattering.

"…I need to prepare for tomorrow." Rob said quickly as he mustered the courage to push Acedia off. "I don't have time for your mind games. Excuse me…"

Rob was baffled that Acedia didn't attempt to stop him from running away. He was able to take his water bottle and flee the kitchen. He could still hear Acedia even when he rushed to the elevator. Why did it go up when no one used it? Why did he have to stay on the same floor as this stalker?

"You'll forget about the Monado Boy and be drawn to me soon enough." Rob could hear Acedia tell him when the elevator opened. Rob didn't hesitate to rush into the elevator and close it behind him quickly. He let out a sigh of relief as the elevator starting going up. Hopefully, he would be able to avoid him the entire week while he was participating in the tournament.

 _What did he mean by "as long as I keep winning?" is something going to happen if I lose? I…hope not…_

* * *

 **Me: TBC with 6869 words.**

 **Li: Soon…**

 **Me: Yes…very soon…notes!  
**

 **1\. Palutena and Ares being siblings are established in my universe as well as almost all the Greek Gods being related to one another in some shape or form. Palutena is the elder sister to Ares and I showed in stories like** _ **Rage Quit**_ **that she is indeed a bully. Ares is implied to be good meaning but short tempered and not that smart. He's often taken advantage of by others as a result. He's stubborn but has some good insight. He also gets an entire realm for himself and is smart enough to actually find a way to counter the Golden Land should things go to hell.**

 **2\. Because Bayonetta already described the Witch Hunter Realm in the previous chapter, I felt like it would be redundant for Acedia to explain what the locations are. I didn't say where due to it being a plot point later of Rob not listening to where things are.**

 **3\. I only describe the appearance of Zelda, Morrigan and Chun-Kei because I have already introduced Virtue, Jingle, Julius and Alacryn in precious stories and they have shown up in my recent stories too.**

 **4\. I'm obvious bending the rules in my universe on what stage is allowed. I don't like going on the same stage multiple times when I'm writing Smash battles, so I add stages that should have been legal and what have been banned because the Smash community likes to complain a lot. Also, customs are allowed to be used in this story but I won't bring it up until Palutena fights. By allowing customs, it allows the Smashers to be able to mix up their special attacks thus having a bigger variety. Granted, it means Villager can be cheap, but I'll make sure it won't come down to camping to piss the player off.**

 **5\. If the room arrangement seems odd it's intentional. If Acedia wanted to get to Rob more easily, he would have put him on the second floor but chose the third one. Like he would want Rob away from the most powerful fighters outside of Smash, but he doesn't want Rob so low that it makes him more paranoid than he already is of him.**

 **That's it. Reviews are appreciated. Ja ne!**


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